Steve Kerr said Draymond "crossed the line" with his ejection tonight pic.twitter.com/mBCUU3SjSc
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) February 21, 2021
It was perhaps the Warriors’ weirdest game of the year, and it doesn’t seem likely that will change. Stephen Curry was suddenly scratched from the game because he felt unwell (not related to the NBA’s COVID-19 protocol). After trailing and struggling for most of the game, they recovered and stretched to a 10-point lead with 4:44 remaining.
Then, a pair of seemingly identical plays happened. Brad Wanamaker picked up a loose ball and at that point, head coach Steve Kerr said he called a timeout which was not given. The referees seemed to take ages to sort out the mess and eventually called a jump ball. The Charlotte Hornets won the ball, but Draymond Green quickly snatched on it for what looked like a jump ball.
Instead, the Hornets were given a timeout and Green exploded, receiving two technical fouls and an ejection. The Warriors’ two-point lead was immediately erased by a pair of Terry Rozier free throws. Seconds later, he hit a fall-away game-winner.
Kerr was less than pleased with the decision.
“It’s a very difficult call on a loose ball that becomes a jump ball that they get a timeout on,” Kerr said. “Especially because in the exact same situation, I was trying to call a timeout when Brad [Wanamaker] had the ball at the top of the key when they forced the jump ball just prior to that. So given that the exact same thing happened back-to-back, only we actually had possession of the ball when when I tried to call timeout. And then watching the replay after the game, it’s a loose ball. The ball is actually bouncing on the floor. Draymond on dives after it. In my estimation, it should be another jump ball.”
Here's Steve Kerr view of the end game sequence. pic.twitter.com/NT5tg0lwaz
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) February 21, 2021
Regarding Draymond Green’s ejection, Kerr said the onus is on Green.
“As for the technical, Draymond can’t do that,” Kerr said. “He knows that. He made a terrible mistake, getting T’d up and giving them the chance to shoot free throws and tie the game… He crossed the line, that’s the main thing. We love his passion and his energy and we would not be the team we are without him, but that doesn’t give him license to cross that line and he knows that.”
